Winter Celebration & Refreshments
2018-12-31 19:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Welcome the new year by celebrating the treasure of sangha with your sangha!
Please bring a finger food offering, and poetry, story, or music to share (if you wish).

Study Group
2019-01-03 08:00 - 09:00
Study is one of the pillars of Zen practice. Please join us every Thursday morning for our ongoing study group to discuss ancient and contemporary texts.

Facilitated by Rev. So’on Jim Hare.
Current text: TBA
Contact Rollin Ives (twl4148@gmail.com) for details.

Practice Circle on "Resolution and Vow"
2019-01-07 19:00 - 21:00
led by So On Jim Hare

Introduction to Zen Meditation
2019-01-14 18:00 - 18:40, 2019-02-11 18:00 - 18:40
For those who are new to Zen meditation, we offer this 40-minute introduction to our forms of practice on the second Monday every month.

Dharma Talk by Rev. Mary Mocine (by recording)
2019-01-14 19:00 - 21:00
Due to family illness, Rev. Mary Mocine will not be able to attend as planned. However, we will be able to hear her teaching on Death and Dying by listening to a recording made on January 13th at SBMG. She recommends reading this article in advance of listening to her talk.
Reverend Mary Mocine, is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.

Program Inspired by Martin Luther King
2019-01-21 19:00 - 21:00
led by Doralee Grindler Katonah.

Dharma Talk by Rev. Myo Lahey
2019-01-28 19:00 - 21:00, 2019-02-25 19:00 - 21:00
Rev. Myo Lahey is Abbot at Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco and our guiding teacher. He has previously served as Practice Leader at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. He is a Dharma heir of Tenshin Reb Anderson. Rev. Myo is available for individual practice discussion by appointment prior to our evening program.

Jizo Ceremony - For Loved Ones Who Have Died and Other Losses
2019-02-02 13:00 - 16:00
Jizo is the beloved Great Bodhisattva found within many Buddhist traditions, who carries us across the threshold of death and loss and safely accompanies us through the ‘hell zones’ of deep suffering.
Especially honored in Japan, Jizo (also known as ‘Earth Store’ or ‘Earth Womb’) brings to us the qualities of courage, fearlessness, and tenderness needed to enter into our experiences of grief and loss and to open our hearts to the mystery of life and death.
This will be a sacred time for us to come together to acknowledge and remember the death of someone dear to us or another kind of significant loss, whether recent or from long ago. We will take refuge in the safe container of our shared presence with each other for the sake of our healing.
We will be introduced to this ceremony by our facilitators and then in silence we will create hand-made offerings for our loved ones. In a ceremony of remembrance we will honor their lives and our relationship with them. We will complete the ceremony with a processional into our garden to offer prayer flag messages for the dying and for ourselves as we continue to live our lives.
In this sacred space we will together turn towards the complexity of grief and discover the strength that arises when we embrace our interconnectedness with all beings.
Everyone is welcome and there is no fee. Donations offered will be given to the Susan Orr Memorial Garden.
Registration will be at Eventbrite.com
For further information contact: Doralee Grindler Katonah at grindkaton@icloud.com
This ceremony has been brought to us from Japan by Yvonne Rand and Jan Chosen-Bays and transmitted to Chris Forten and Sarah Emerson (all transmitted Zen Priests). Doralee Grindler Katonah will lead, assisted by So On Jim Hare. Doralee has received two years of training in preparation for guiding this ceremony.

Inquiry into the Nature of Socially Engaged Buddhism
2019-02-04 19:00 - 21:00
Two Evenings of Inquiry into the Nature of Socially Engaged Buddhism
February 4th and 11th
Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief.
Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now.
You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.
-The Talmud
On this first evening, three Sangha members will offer brief accounts of the ways they are working locally to influence social and political choices. Our assumption is that many sangha members are doing this, whether through voting, volunteer activities, or personal consumption choices. We will follow with a discussion centered around these three questions:
1. Do you ever suffer – physically, psychologically, emotionally, or spiritually – from political, social, economic, or environmental conditions affecting you and others? If so, what do you do about it?
2. Do the terms “engaged Buddhism” and “activism” evoke positive, negative, or neutral sensations/ feeling tones for you?
3. Is engaged Buddhism part of your practice? If so, does it include activism?
We encourage you to prepare a list of the ‘socially conscious’ activities that engage you. Even if you do not consider these activities to be engaged Buddhism we invite everyone to individually and anonymously provide a written list at the first meeting on February 4. The lists will be compiled and presented by on February 11.

What goes on the list? Everything. You might wish to note that you have used your own cup and lid when buying tea at Starbucks for the past five years, and since you buy five cups a week, that means you have eliminated 1,300 plastic cup lids from entering the environment. Or perhaps you always carry a reusable water bottle now, or your own reusable straw. Or you have been driving a hybrid or an electric car for the past year. Or maybe you are working with a group on prison and criminal justice reforms. Or you are involved in lobbying for better health care. Or you do pro bono legal work for immigrant families. Or you invest in funds that put money only into companies that are aligned with social justice and environmental principles. Or you marched on MLK day, or in solidarity with women’s rights, LGBT rights, or with Black Lives Matter. Or … you get the idea. List it all. Because there is probably a lot there.

The February 4 session will include two brief presentations by Oscar Balaguer and Rollin Ives. In preparation, Oscar and Rollin invite you to read this article, “Stand Against Suffering, A Call to Action by Buddhist Teachers.” The article, signed by more than 140 Buddhist leaders, was published in Lion’s Roar on August 21, 2017.
Additional reading: “What’s Buddhist about Socially Engaged Buddhism?” by David Loy.

Both sessions will be facilitated by So On Jim Hare.

Inquiry into the Nature of Socially Engaged Buddhism
2019-02-11 19:00 - 21:00
Two Evenings of Inquiry into the Nature of Socially Engaged Buddhism
February 4th and 11th
Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief.
Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now.
You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.
-The Talmud

The February 11 session is envisioned as a deeper dive into a sort of data-driven snapshot of the depth and breadth of the VSZS community’s already on-going socially engaged Buddhist practices. Even if you do not consider these activities to be engaged Buddhism we invite everyone to individually and anonymously provide a written list at the first meeting on February 4. The lists will be compiled and presented by on February 11.

Your written lists are responses to these three questions:
1. Do you ever suffer – physically, psychologically, emotionally, or spiritually – from political, social, economic, or environmental conditions affecting you and others? If so, what do you do about it?
2. Do the terms “engaged Buddhism” and “activism” evoke positive, negative, or neutral sensations/feeling tones for you?
3. Is engaged Buddhism part of your practice? If so, does it include activism?

What goes on the list? Everything. You might wish to note that you have used your own cup and lid when buying tea at Starbucks for the past five years, and since you buy five cups a week, that means you have eliminated 1,300 plastic cup lids from entering the environment. Or, perhaps you always carry a reusable water bottle now, or your own reusable straw. Or, you have been driving a hybrid or an electric car for the past year. Or, maybe you are working with a group on prison and criminal justice reforms. Or, you are involved in lobbying for better health care. Or, you do pro bono legal work for immigrant families. Or, you invest in funds that put money only into companies that are aligned with social justice and environmental principles. Or, you marched on MLK day, or in solidarity with women’s rights, LGBT rights, or with Black Lives Matter. Or … you get the idea. List it all. Because there is probably a lot there.

Suggested reading:

“Stand Against Suffering, A Call to Action by Buddhist Teachers.”, signed by more than 140 Buddhist leaders; published in Lion’s Roar on August 21, 2017.
“What’s Buddhist about Socially Engaged Buddhism?” by David Loy.

“There is no magic formula to be involved. The solutions are not to be found, they are to be worked out together.” – David Loy

Full Moon Ceremony
2019-02-18 19:00 - 21:00
This ceremony reminds us that enlightenment is enacted with Bodhisattva precepts, which are recited in a call and response format during the ceremony. We enter the ceremony following two periods of zazen interspersed with walking meditation. Whole-heartedly we celebrate the whole moon. Everyone is invited to participate.

One-day Sitting, led by So On Jim Hare
2019-03-02 09:00 - 17:00
“I said to my soul, be still, and wait without hope
For hope would be hope for the wrong thing;
wait without love,
For love would be love of the wrong thing;
there is yet faith
But the faith and the love and the hope are all in the waiting.
Wait without thought, for you are not ready for thought:
So the darkness shall be the light, and the stillness the dancing.”
~ T.S. Elliot
With this sitting, we will celebrate Dogen’s practice/realization, something that Elliot intuitively describes in his poem. Everyone is invited to join this day of sitting and walking meditation. There will be a Dharma talk and silent bag lunch (please bring your own lunch).
REGISTER ON EVENTBRITE.COM
Questions? Email So On Jim Hare at info@valleystreamszen.org

Practice Talk by John Wark
2019-03-04 19:00 - 21:00

Memorial Service to celebrate Mary Reilly
2019-03-09 11:00 - 15:00
Mary Reilly, long-time member and leader of SBMG and the Sacramento Dharma Center community, will be honored and remembered by her many friends and family. Mary taught meditation to children and teachers in public schools; she loved nature, especially the Sandhill Cranes; she was friendly and generous to all and a talented organizerl. Mary passed away suddenly on February 27.

Dharma Talk by Rev. Mary Mocine
2019-03-11 19:00 - 21:00
Reverend Mary Mocine, is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.

Retreat Night
2019-03-18 19:00 - 21:00
Retreat Night offers an opportunity to settle into your meditation practice with three 25-minute periods of zazen, interspersed with walking meditation (kinhin). Turning the light inward, we explore the causes of suffering and what ends it. This invitation is extended to everyone.

Morning Zazen
2019-03-21 06:00 - 07:30
Every Thursday we offer two early morning sittings (6-6:30 & 6:40-7:10) followed by a brief service (7:10-7:20). Following service, you are invited to share a cup of tea or coffee before continuing with the rest of your day. Early morning zazen is the practice of Zen students everywhere. Before engaging in life’s busy activity, we relax and wake up on the cushion. Come for all or part of the schedule.
6:00 Zazen
6:30 Kinhin (walking meditation)
6:40 Zazen
7:10 Service
7:20 Tea, Coffee & Conversation

Study Group
2019-03-21 08:00 - 09:00
Study is one of the pillars of Zen practice. Please join us every Thursday morning for our ongoing study group to discuss ancient and contemporary texts.

Facilitated by Rev. So On Jim Hare.
Current text: Dogen’s Genjokoan, using Shohaku Okamura’s book Realizing Genjo Koan as our study guide.
Contact Rollin Ives (twl4148@gmail.com) for details.

Dharma Talk by Rev. Myo Lahey
2019-03-25 19:00 - 21:00
Rev. Myo Lahey is Abbot at Hartford Street Zen Centerin San Francisco and our guiding teacher. He has previously served as Practice Leader at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. He is a Dharma heir of Tenshin Reb Anderson. Rev. Myo is available for individual practice discussion by appointment prior to our evening program.

Dharma Talk by Rev. So On Jim Hare
2019-04-01 19:00 - 21:00
So On Jim Hare serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, and was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. He was priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016.

Every Day Brand New - A One-day Retreat, led by Rev. Mary Mocine
2019-04-06 09:00 - 17:00
Reverend Mary Mocine, Abbess of Vallejo Zen Center aka Clear Water Zendo, will lead this one-day sitting. She trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and at Tassajara Zen Monastery. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.
The theme for this sitting is “Buddha’s birthday, renewing our practice.” The day will include periods of sitting and walking meditation, a Dharma talk and a ceremony to celebrate the birth of the Buddha (traditionally celebrated on April 8th in Japan).
Registration is on a sliding scale, from $20 to $50, in $10 increments. There is the option to register and pay online, or register and pay at the door. A teacher donation will be requested on the day of the retreat. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. If you would like a scholarship, or if this will be your first one-day sitting with us, please call Jim Hare at (916) 456-7752 before April 3rd and prior to registering.
Please bring a bag lunch to enjoy during this day of quiet, calm and attentive renewal.

Practice Talk by Michael Simpson and David Angstead
2019-04-08 19:00 - 21:00

Dharma Talk by Rev. Myo Lahey
2019-04-15 19:00 - 21:00
Rev. Myo Lahey is Abbot at Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco and our guiding teacher. He has previously served as Practice Leader at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. He is a Dharma heir of Tenshin Reb Anderson. Rev. Myo is available for individual practice discussion by appointment prior to our evening program. Please call ‭(916) 393-3961‬ to schedule an appointment.

Dharma talk by Rev. Edward Espe Brown
2019-04-22 19:00 - 21:00
Edward Espe Brown is a well-known Soto Zen Buddhist teacher, author, and chef. He was ordained in 1971 by Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, who gave him the Dharma name Jusan Kainei , “Longevity Mountain, Peaceful Sea.” He leads sitting groups and meditation retreats in Northern California and internationally. His latest book is The Most Important Point: Zen Teachings, published by Sounds True. Edward will also lead a one-day retreat for SBMG on Saturday, April 20. He will be reading and signing his book on Friday, April 19th at Time Tested Books, 1114 21st Street (between L & K streets).

Way-seeking Mind Talk by Larry Smith
2019-04-29 19:00 - 21:00

Accomplishing the Work of Great Peace - a one-day retreat with Rev. Myo
2019-05-04 09:00 - 17:00
“Accomplishing the work of great peace is without sign” – Tiantong. Since this is so, we can find it everywhere. But some say, “It still eludes my heart/mind.” If so, then we are invited to return to the meditation hall. Please join us for a day of stillness and peace, supported by the deeply practiced wisdom of our guiding teacher, Rev. Myo Lahey, Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco.
Register at Eventbrite.com is on a sliding scale, $20-$50, or you may pay at the door. A teacher donation will be requested on the day of the retreat. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. If you would like a scholarship, or If this will be your first one-day sitting with us, please call Michael Simpson at ‭(860) 922-7796 prior to registering.
**Please bring a bag lunch to enjoy during this day of quiet, calm and attentive renewal. Rev. Myo will available for individual practice discussion during the sitting.

Pilgrimage to Japan, presented by So On Jim Hare & Un Jo Karen Hamilton
2019-05-06 19:00 - 21:00
Jim and Karen will relate their impressions of temple life and traditional Japanese arts encountered during their recent trip to Japan.

Retreat Night
2019-05-13 19:00 - 21:00
On Retreat Night you have an opportunity to settle into your meditation practice with three 25-minute periods of zazen, interspersed with walking meditation (called kinhin). Turning the light inward we explore the causes of suffering and what can end it. This invitation is extended to everyone.
